Computer networks have become increasingly complex while people have relied on computers coupled to the networks to transmit and fetch information. The computer networks are responsible for transporting information between the computers used in the business as well as allowing users to connect to their work from remote locations. Enterprise management systems have been developed to assist in monitoring networks and computers on the networks. Current information technology (IT) centers require monitoring of different IT assets including, for example, network devices, host computers, servers, operating systems and applications running on the above devices, websites provided by the above devices, etc.
Various schemes have been provided for distributing monitoring services to customers such as companies or other organizations. One known scheme involves a reseller that sells a service contract to the customer and maintains a relationship with the customer for the duration of the service contract, with the service provider having no access to customer. This scheme, however, has significant flaws because the reseller often does not posses full knowledge of the monitoring service and has to turn to the service provider for help, thus creating a delay in responding to the customer's inquiries and requests.
Another limitation of existing monitoring services is their billing approach. They typically request customers to subscribe for annual service and pay upfront for the entire year. This approach is especially inappropriate for businesses that are not well established financially or businesses whose network infrastructure changes throughout the year.